A lot cannot be surveyed, permitted, or broken ground on while it is still covered in blackberry, brush, and years of accumulated debris. Billy Goat Property Services works with builders, developers, and contractors across the Portland metro to clear a site down to bare, workable ground before the rest of the build timeline can start.
What Portland Requires Before Ground Is Disturbed
Portland’s clearing and grading code, Chapter 24.70, does not require a clearing permit for areas under 5,000 square feet, which covers most single residential lots. Larger parcels, anything over five acres, or land inside specific environmental or greenway zones, do require a permit before any clearing begins. Tree removal is regulated separately under Title 11, and removing a tree six inches or larger in diameter gets reviewed as part of that Tree Plan process rather than the general clearing permit.
This means the vegetation clearing we do, blackberry, brush, and smaller growth under the permit thresholds, is usually the first item off a site regardless of what triggers a full permit. Larger tree removal and any grading or excavation work still needs its own permitted contractor, and we coordinate around that scope rather than overlapping it.
Why Sites Need Clearing Before a Survey or Permit Review
A surveyor cannot confirm property lines through a blackberry thicket, and a permit reviewer cannot assess drainage or erosion control on a lot buried under years of brush and debris. Clearing the vegetation first gives the builder a lot that can actually be surveyed, staked, and reviewed on the timeline the project needs, rather than adding weeks of delay once the crew shows up and finds the site is not what the photos suggested.
What Site Clearing Actually Involves
We clear blackberry, brush, and smaller vegetation the same way we do on construction sites and vacant commercial lots across the metro, using commercial brush cutting equipment rather than homeowner-grade tools, then haul everything off site so nothing is left for the building crew to work around. On lots that have sat vacant for a while, that often includes old debris, remnants of a prior structure, or dumped material that has to go before anything else can happen. We leave the site at bare, walkable ground, ready for a surveyor, an erosion control installer, or the next contractor in line.
A Pre-Permit Clearing Job in Canby
A small developer picked up a lot outside Canby that had sat vacant for several years and had grown into dense blackberry across most of the buildable area. The survey crew could not get a clean sightline across the property, and the erosion control contractor needed bare ground to install silt fencing. We cleared the site in two days, hauled everything off site, and had it ready before the surveyor’s rescheduled visit that same week.
A Multi-Lot Clearing Job for a Small Builder
A builder working three adjacent lots in Hillsboro brought us in to clear all three at once rather than staggering the work lot by lot. Coordinating one crew across all three sites let us finish faster than three separate mobilizations would have, and the builder had erosion control installed and inspections scheduled within the same week across the whole project rather than waiting on each lot separately.
When to Call a Professional
A small residential lot with light growth might only need a single afternoon of clearing before a survey. A larger parcel, one with blackberry established across multiple seasons, or a project on a tight permit timeline is where bringing in a crew with commercial equipment saves real time compared to a general contractor’s crew handling it between other tasks.
Builders working toward a specific permit or inspection date should schedule clearing early in the project timeline, not as an afterthought once the rest of the schedule is already set. Lot and land clearing across the Portland metro covers what to expect across a broader range of lot sizes and situations beyond the builder-specific scope here.
Common Questions About Site Clearing for Builders and Developers
Do I need a permit just to clear brush and vegetation before building?
In Portland, clearing under 5,000 square feet generally does not require a separate clearing permit. Larger parcels, over five acres, or land in certain environmental or greenway zones do require one. We can clear vegetation either way, but obtaining a required permit is the property owner’s or builder’s responsibility.
Do you remove trees as part of site clearing?
We handle brush, blackberry, and smaller vegetation. Removal of larger trees, six inches or more in diameter, falls under a separate tree permit process and typically needs a contractor licensed for that specific work.
How fast can a lot be cleared before a scheduled survey or inspection?
Most single residential lots can be cleared in a day or two. Larger parcels or lots with established blackberry across multiple seasons take longer. We give a realistic timeline at the estimate based on what the site actually looks like.
Can you coordinate clearing across multiple lots for one project?
Yes. We regularly clear multiple adjacent lots in a single mobilization for builders working more than one site at a time.
What happens to the debris and vegetation once it is cleared?
Everything is hauled off site. We do not leave cut material piled on the lot for the building crew to work around.
If you have a lot that needs clearing before a survey, permit review, or the next phase of a build, contact us for a free estimate. We will give you a realistic timeline based on the site and the schedule you are building around.